The City Council will conduct a first reading of the newly revised parking ordinance, which will no allow on-street parking with reasonable restrictions.
Besides on-street parking, the new parking ordinance was also revised to ensure public safety vehicles have access throughout the community and ensure delivery of other governmental services such as garbage and recycling.
The Apopka Police Department rewrote the parking ordinance with input from the parking advisory committee, made of members from subdivisions throughout Apopka. The police and the committee met from July 2016 through October 2016. The public hearing of the draft ordinance was held on September 26. Comments from that meeting were considered when revising the ordinance and presented at the final workshop on October 10.
Prior to 2016, the parking ordinance was last updated in 2013.
“Nothing’s changed with it (the ordinance) since we had all the meetings,” said Police Captain Randy Fernandez. “The hold up was for some of the stuff to be clarified by the attorney (Andrew Hand, one of city attorney Cliff Shepard’s associates).
Fernandez explained that the ordinance’s language has not changed since the committee met last October. Such language still covers the prohibiting of vehicles within 15 feet of a mailbox and 12 feet of a driveway. Moreover, cars can’t be parked in front of mailboxes between 8 a.m. and 7 p.m.
“All the substantive issues discussed by the committee are there,” he said.
The Planning Commission recommended approval of the parking ordinance on December 13. The second reading and possible adoption is scheduled for Wednesday, March 1, at 1:30 p.m., according to city documents found in the City Council agenda package.
Task Force report
Apopka business owner Rod Love will present a 40-page report the Apopka Community Task Force on Violence released last year. Identified as a community biopsy by the group, the document calls for a five-pronged approach to solving violence in the area, especially in South Apopka.
The report, first unveiled in December 2016 at a press conference, calls for the following:
• improved community safety
• improved relationships between law enforcement and community residents
• improved environment of the development of employability skills
• more available jobs
• improved educational and vocational opportunities
The Apopka Community Task Force on Violence had about 17 members including local law enforcement officers, area pastors, local students, and other community members. Love was on the task force.
The group was founded and held workshops on community solutions in early 2016 after several incidents of gun violence occurred in South Apopka.
The Apopka Chief will have an extended story about the City Council meeting in its Friday, February 17, print edition.
